Love letter to 22 month old Nathaniel

Dear Natey,

Hello, my amazing little boy. You're two months away from being two years old! I thought by this point I might be getting a little tired of our long days together, but nope. I love them. I love playing with you, teaching you and laughing with you every day. 

 

It has warmed up quite a bit and the park has now become a huge part of our lives. Our daily routine usually includes mornings at the park, where you have a regular group of playmates. You ask about certain kids by name and clearly look forward to seeing them. We always bring some cars and trucks and add them to the pile that is shared among you. You spend part of your time playing with the vehicles, but you also enjoy chasing your friends and throwing a ball back and forth.  The ball part seems to work best if the kid is a bit older, to keep the game on track. I know I've already mentioned this before, but you have terrific aim. You're also a big swing & slide guy too.

The rest of our day is usually spent playing in our yard (favorite activities include watering the plants, digging up my tulip bulbs and falling on the concrete),  in our house, taking walks and running errands. Your favorite new indoor games include "hide and seek" and "tell Ava."  Hide and seek goes like this - you cover your eyes for approximately one whole second while I hurl myself behind one of the three hiding spots in your room. Then you gasp and squeal with delight when you find me. I have no idea how this has managed to remain fresh for you. And "tell Ava" goes like this - we take turns commanding our dog in a stern voice to complete tasks that she is incapable of completing. Then you laugh hysterically (in her face). For example, "AVA! Iron my shirt. Heeheehee! AVA! Fly an airplane. Hahaha! AVA! Mow the lawn. Bwahahahaha!"

Oh, and we read a lot of books, like What Do You Do with a Tail Like This?

And you talk, and talk and talk. When you want to know what something is called, you say, "This is?" And when you don't know the answer to a question you'll say, (in non-question form, kind of like a disinterested teenager) "huh."  You speak in four and five word sentences occasionally, but most of your sentences are still between one and three words. You know all of your letters by sight and now we're working on the sounds they make. I think you know all of the numbers between one and nine by sight, but usually don't count past three.  As for shapes, you have a good grasp on triangle, square, heart and circle. In fact, about two weeks ago, you started drawing circles. The first time you drew one, I had my head down drawing circles and triangles for you. You said, "Mommy, CIR-CAL" and I looked up to find this:

I was so shocked and proud! Then you wrote "Ava" - okay, not really - that was me.



You're really into things that match and love pointing them out to me in your books (thank you, Sesame Street). You could survive on PEE-BUTTER SAMICHes alone if I let you. You're also in a naked phase and a screaming phase. At least I really, really hope they're phases. Especially the screaming one. In public. Nate in the grocery cart: AHHHH! Me: Nate, I'm right here, you don't need to scream. Nate (with glee): AHHHHHHHHHHHHH! RIGHT HERE! AHHH! Awesome.

You are awesome. I love you more than tongue can tell.  ~ Mommy